More about the necessary focus

It appears that I’m not the only one who thinks that the election of Donald Trump will force Canada to change its focus. In an article in the Globe and Mail, Steven Chase quotes some academics, analysts, and former defence Minister Peter MacKay, some of whom agree that “Canada is “absolutely not” spending enough on defence right now … [and] … Canada will face “huge pressure” from a Trump administration, backed by a Republican-controlled Congress, to increase defence spending,” and, further, that, as Peter MacKay put it, “the peacekeeping missions being contemplated by the Trudeau government will “cut it in the eyes of a Trump administration.”“

The article concludes by quoting Professor Roland Paris, who was one of Prime Minister’s Trudeau’s top policy advisers for about six months, who said “Mr. Trump’s attitude toward NATO is worrisome for U.S. allies “This is potentially profound. America’s unqualified commitment to European security has had a deeply stabilizing influence on that continent for more than 60 years. … Donald Trump seems to view NATO as a kind of protection racket rather than an alliance. We’re entering a period of uncertainty, which is potentially destabilizing.”“

The issue isn’t Mr Trump; the issue is Canada’s priorities: are they, really, climate change and peacekeeping or are they maintaining good, reliable, trusted relations with America?